R&D STRATEGIES AND FIRM INNOVATIVE PERFORMANCE: A PANEL DATA ANALYSIS

The aim of this research is to ascertain the effects of the different R&D strategies (RDSs) — defined as make, buy and make-buy — on firm innovative performance. In order to evaluate RDSs effects in a broader sense, and looking for robust results, we consider different measures of product and/or process innovations as indicators of firm innovative performance. Using panel data models for a sample of 1478 Spanish manufacturing firms during the period 1992–2005, we observe that all RDSs produce a positive influence over all innovation outputs, although the impact is greater for the make-buy strategy and lower for the buy strategy. These effects are conditional on temporality since the greatest impact occurs one year later and that in the second year is reduced to half. Results show that the buy strategy seems to have only short-term effects, whereas the make-buy effects are greater and last longer. In addition, we find empirical support for our proposed argument that RDS effects on firm innovativeness are moderated by technological intensity level.